Sweeping Changes: Bill 148 Now Law in Ontario

Brace yourself, Ontario. Today Bill 148 passed Third Readingand the Ontario Legislature will pass the bill into law on November 27, 2017 when it receives Royal Assent. Most of the changes will come into force on January 1, 2018, while a small handful of the amended ESA sections may possibly come into force as early as December 3, 2017 (leave of absence related provisions). Provisions related to equal pay come into force on April 1, 2018.

As an aside, it also appears that the high heels OHSA amendment I blogged about this morning was incorporated into the final version of Bill 148 and thus also became law this afternoon. Happy new year to those women who can no longer be forced to wear heels if they don’t wish to.